Heating apparatus



June 22, 1965 5 INVENTOR.

JosuH United Statesk Patent 3,190,280 f HEATING AYPARATUS Joseph Pirincin, 9909 Foster Ave., Cleveland, Ohio Filed Mar. 11, 1963, Ser. No. 264,402 1 Claim. (Cl. 126--116) vide a'maximum heat exchange from the products of combustion to the air to be heated and with a'rnaximum operating eiiciency. t

Another object of the present invention is to yprovide an improved air heater of the aforementioned type which is of simple construction and which may be economically manufactured. i

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved air heater of the aforementioned type which provides a compact, unitary construction, which requires a minimum of door space, and which may be easily assembled and disassembled for purposesl of installation Vand maintenance.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. V1 is a front elevational view with parts broken l Va modified form of the present invention which is particularly adapted for use in connection with forced air type heating systems.

In general, the present invention, briefly described, provides a heating apparatus, of the hot air type, which includes an outer casing with inlet and outlet openings therein for the passage of air to be heated through'the heater. A vertically extending bellows-shaped combustion chainber is disposed centrally 'within the casing having a fuel burner adjacent one end thereof, and a plurality of horizontally extending baille plates therein and spaced from one another and frornthe interior surfaces of the combustion chamber, for controlling the flow of products of cornbustion in a generally tortuous path through-the heater.

A plurality of horizontally extending dellector plates project from the respective sides of the casing and are spaced frornone another, and from the exterior surfaces ,of the bellows-shaped combustion chamber for controlling the flow of air to be heated in a generally tortuous path through the heater and out through the outlet opening in the casing, as aforesaid. f

Referring now more particularly to FIGS. l to, 3 of the drawings, the improved air heater designated generally at 1 is illustrated as a gravity heater and as comprising a vertically extending casing 2 of suitable dimensions and mate- ICC facilitate cleaning and maintenance thereof. The lower end of the casing is provided with a suitableinlet opening 6, such that cold air to be heatedmay be passed into the heater, while the upper end of the casing 2 is provided with an outlet opening 7 for discharging the thus heated air from within the heater.

Mounted centrally within the casing 2 is a vertically extending bellows-shaped combustion chamber designated generally by the reference character 8. The combustion chamber ti preferably includes a plurality of concentrically disposed, axially aligned ilues 9 juxtaposed on top of one another and supported on a lireoox lo. The frrebox l@ serves to space the fines 9 from the base ll of the heater and forms a conduit for the products of combustion.- In the embodiment illustrated, the flues 9 are preferably of identical construction, each or" which includes a pair of dish-shaped, gencrally circular in plan (PIG. 3) upperlZ and lower i3 sections which are joined together by means of a generally L-shaped circumfercntially extending liange ifi which extends from the upper section l2) and which may be integrally joined to the confronting marginal edge of the lower section 13 by means lof suitable weldrnents l5. Thus assembled, each of the respective liues 9 defines a generally elongated bellows-shaped configuration in vertical cross-section {lilGn 2) which provides a pair of oppositely-inclined generally annular reflecting surfaces lo and i7 on the interior of the flue, and a corresponding pairof oppositcly inclined annular relecting surfaces i8 and i9 on the exterior of the flue. Thus, it will be seen that such construction ariords the maximum absorbing and heat transfer surface area within the combustion chamber 3 for conducting heat from the productsof combustion to the air to be heated.

ln the form illustrated, the respective juxtaposed ilues 9 are open at the top and bottom and are preferably joined together, such as by suitable weldments 2d, to provide the aforementioned bellows-shaped combustion chamber S. One end of the combustion chamber communicates with the irebox lil and the other end of the chamber communicates with an outlet conduit 2l attached to the uppermost flue for discharging products of combustion from the chamber 8. A fuel burner 22 is mounted on a support 23 and is positioned adjacent the lower end of the combustion chamber within the iirebox lll. T le burneris illustrated diagrammaticaliy as a type utilizing gas as a fuel, and thus is provided with a gas inlet conduit 24 which extends exteriorly of the heater. l

The products of combustion passing upwardly through the combustionA chamberl 8 are` deflected by a' plurality of horizontally extending baille plates 2S, one of which is disposed inter crediate the upper l2 and lower i3 sections constituting each of the respective liue segments 9. The bathe plates 25 are preferably made of relatively dat strips of sheet metal, generally square-shaped in plan, and being cut-out along four sides ythereof to provide oppositely disposed generally concaveedges 26 along such four sides (FIG. 3). Each of the baffle plates 25 has its four corners attached to the side walls of the respective iiues 9, as at 27, such that the concave edges 26 of each baille plate are spaced from the opposite surface of the flue to provide vertically extending openings 28 therewith for the passage of products of combustion through the heater.

VThe baffle plates 25 are spaced vertically from one another and coact with the interior surfaces of the bellowsshaped combustion chamber S to provide tortuous passageways for the flow of heat and the products of cornbustion, which passageways extend from the burner 22 to the outlet opening 2l adjacent the top of the combustion chamber, as shown by the solid arrows in FlG. 2. As the heat and products of combustion ascend in a serpentine form following a generally tortuous path upwardly through the combustion chamber S, they are deflected fromv the under surfaces ofthe plates 25 against the oppositelyinclined interior surfaces 16 and 17 within each of the respective ilues 9, thus effectively communicating heat over the greatest exposed surface area within the chamber' as the products of combustion pass upwardry to the outlet opening 21.

Projecting inwardly from the respective side walls of the casing 2 are a plurality of horizontally extending side detlectors 29 for controlling the flow of air to be heated as it passes through the heater. The deilcctors 29 may be made 4from a unitary strip of sheet metal or may be made in four separate sections and attached to the respective side walls of the casing 2 by suitable bolts 30. In the form illustrated, the detfectors 29 are spaced vertically from one another and alternately relative to the Ibattle plates 25, such that their horizontally extended planes pass through the juncture between the respectiev juxtaposed ues 9.

Each of the detlectors 29 extends inwardly from the opposite side wall of the casing 2 toward the combustion chamber 8 but is spaced from the oppositely-inclined exterior surfaces 18 and 19 of its respective flue to provide a generally tortuous passageway for the air to be heated through the heater. The tortuous passageway extends from the inlet opening 6 to the outlet opening 7 in the casing. As the air to be heated ascends through the heater, it is deflected by the aforementioned deflector plates 29 against the oppositely-inclined exterior surfaces 18 and 19 of the respective ilues 9, thus effectively absorbing the maximum amount of heat from the greatest exposed surface area of the combustion chamber 8 in passing upwardly and out of the outlet opening 7 in the casing.

In a typical application of the present invention, the products of combustion from the burner 22 rise through the bellows-shaped combustion chamber S in continuous tortuous paths around the interior baille plates 25 until the products of combustion ultimately pass out through the outlet opening 21 and into a suitable chimney or the like (not shown). Similarly the air to be heated ows upwardly through the heater in a continuously tortuous path around the exterior side deectors 29 until the air thus heated is ultimately passed out through the outlet opening 7 adjacent the top of the heater.

In FIG. 4 of the drawings, the improved heater of the present invention is illustrated in connection with a forced air heating system. In this embodiment of the invention, the casing 2, bellows-shaped combustion chamber 8, burner 22, battle 2S and dellector 29 construction are substantially the same as heretofore described in connece tion with FIGS. 1 to 3 of the drawings. In this form, however, the casing 2 is provided with an inlet manifold 31 which forms an inlet conduit for air to be heated. The manifold may be provided with a suitable blower 32 which forces air to be heated from the surrounding environment into the inlet 6 in a continuous tortuous path through the heater and out through the outlet opening 7, thereby to accomplish the maximum heat exchange in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

Through 4for purposes of disclosure, the juxtaposed ues which extend vertically through the heater have been illustrated as generally circular in plan, it is to be understood that other various shapes and/or coniigurations such as square, rectangular, hexagonal, etc. are also contemplated in the present invention. Similarly, though four such tlues have been illustrated juxtaposed on top of one another, it is to be understood that any number of such dues may similarly be utilized in accordance with the present invention depending upon the size and heating requirements in a particular installation of the heater.

From the foregoing description and accompanying drawings, it will be apparent that the present invention provides an improved air heater which is of a simple, compact, unitary construction and which may be readily assembled and disassembled for purposes of installation and maintenance. The heater of the present invention provides a construction wherein the air to be heated will encounter the greatest possible heating surface to provide a maximum heat exchange from the products of combustion. Such construction provides a maximum burner efficiency with the result that the heater of the present invention may be operated with a minimum cost which greatly enhances its commercial application and usability.

The terms 4and expressions which have been used are used as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention in the use of such terms and expressions of excluding any equivalents of any of the features shown or described, or portions thereof, but it is recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention claimed.

I claim:

In a hot air heater, the combination comprising a hollow, substantially closed metal casing having inlet and outlet means for the passage of air to be heated through the heater, a vertically extending, generally bellowsshaped combustion chamber disposed in centrally spaced relationship within said casing, a fuel burner mounted within and adjacent the bottom of said chamber, outlet means adjacent the top of said chamber and extending through said casing for the discharge of products of combustion from said chamber, said chamber including a plurality of superposed generally circular, in plan, tlues to provide a heat exchange reservoir for the products of combustion, each of said ues including upper and ylower frusto-conical members attached together at their Widest diameter, the opposed frusto-conical members between respective of said ues being attached together at their smallest diameter to provide a unitary, single walled structure for the passage of combustion products therethrough, each of said flues including horizontally extending bathe means disposed in the plane of the widest diameter of said tlues, each of said baille means including a ilat, substantially square, sheet metal plate engageably attached at four corners thereof to the confronting interior surface of the respective ue, each of said baille plates being provided with cut-out portions defining concave edges between said corners thereof which coact with the confronting interior surfaces of said flues to provide tortuous passageways therewith for the products of combustion from the burner to the outlet means from said chamber, and a plurality of superposed deflector means extending horizontally inwardly from said casing, each of said deector means including a flat, sheet metal plate disposed in the plane of the smallest diameter of said llues and hence alternately relative to said battle plates, said detlector plates extending into proximity with but spaced from the confronting exterior surface of said titles to provide tortuous passageways for the air to be heated from the inlet means to the outlet means through said casing.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 268,083 11/82 Detwiler 126-90 685,581 10/01 Dellinger 126-116 786,300 4/05 Laberge 126-116 1,464,210 8/23 Marx. 1,578,546 3/26 Myers 126-110 X 2,141,649 12/38 Grill et al 126-118 X 2,286,688 6/42 Roth 110-97 JAMES W. WESTHAVER, Primary Examiner. 

